Month: January 2016

Noah Phillips is a graduate of Newton North High School, Dartmouth College and Stanford Law School. He lives with his family in Washington, D.C. and works on the Senate Judiciary Committee as Chief Counsel to U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX).

What does a typical day look like for you at the office?
The legislating and hearings people watch – or don’t watch – on C-SPAN take up a lot of my time. I also spend time meeting with people, usually to talk about what’s going on in the Judiciary Committee and on the Senate Floor. We discuss legislation, oversight of the Executive Branch, what the courts are doing. If, like me, you’re fascinated by the law, there’s no better way to spend a day at work.

You are a boy from Newton. How did you come to live in Texas?
After law school, I clerked for a judge in San Antonio, Texas. When our family moved to Washington, D.C. and I decided to look at jobs on Capitol Hill, I asked my judge to make a connection with Senator Cornyn’s office.

And a few years before you became a lawyer, you were a Schechter student. How does the U.S. Senate compare with Schechter?
Less davening, but almost as much support for Israel.

What do you remember best from your time at the school?
I loved my Schechter education, so I remember much of it well. Forced to choose, I’d say I remember best Diane Levine’s z”l kindergarten and Enid Paul’s z”l third grade classes. We all miss them both so much.

How does your experience at Schechter continue to impact you today?
I think my experience continues to impact me in three critical ways. First, it was a great secular education and it prepared me well for high school and beyond. Second, the Jewish knowledge and values Schechter imparted gave me strength and the ability to remain active in Jewish life. Third, the relationships I built at Schechter continue to be important and have often reappeared as I’ve moved around and pursued various parts of my life.